BBK: Location Reccie (Sevenoaks Countryside Roads)

The start of our opening sequence will involve a driving scene, for this we have decided to use the roads situated in the country side around Otford and Kemsing and so i have done a location reccie to see the visibility in dark conditions and map out how many of our shots can be seen using a vehicle's lights or purchased lighting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

GROUP: Update

Upon arriving back from the Christmas holidays as a group we have been working on our organisation of different tasks amongst us in order to be time efficient and get the best quality of work we can provide.

 

This lesson we were able to use our past research and concept development Prezis to start our pitch for our final production and assigned ourselves different task to complete for homework making the most of any time we have.

GROUP: Concept Development

MB: Discuss the ways Horror Films are Produced and Distributed

The success of a film is based on whether it makes three times its original budget, so one would naturally assume that Horror films produced by one of the Six Majors are bound to be more of a success that independent films made by small companies such as Vertigo Films, an independent company based in the UK. However, this is not always the case. Majors such as Warner Bros. (Time Warner) may have produced well know horrors such as "The Conjuring" (Wan, 2013), but some of horror's most loved classics were made by independent companies, such as Vertigo Films' "A Night in the Woods" (Parry, 2012)


The Conjuring (Wan, 2013)

The story of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren that work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their farmhouse. The films comes under the Psychological Horror genre

Production

• The film was produced by Tony DeRosa-Grund, Peter Safran and Rob Cowan. The Safran Company (An independent company) and New Line Cinema (A subsidiary of Time Warner) were both studios used in the production


• Development of the film began over 20 years ago when Ed Warren played a tape of Warren's original interview with Carolyn Perron for producer Tony DeRosa-Grund. DeRosa-Grund made a recording of Warren playing back the tape and of their subsequent discussion. At the end of the tape, Warren said to DeRosa-Grund, "If we can't make this into a film I don't know what we can."


• "The Untitled Warren Files Project" was the working title for the film 


• Principal photography began in late February 2012, lasting for 38 days. Shooting took place primarily at EUE/Screen Gems Studios as well as other locations in and around Wilmington, North Carolina

Distribution

• The film was initially intended to release in early 2013, but decided on a summer release date after gaining a positive reception from test audiences. The film was ultimately released on July 19 in North America, and in the United Kingdom on August 2


• The film went on to make $41.5 million after it's opening weekend, breaking the record set by "The Purge" (DeMonaco, 2013) a month earlier for biggest opening weekend for an original horror film


• After its initial run in theatres, the film turned out to be a box office hit by grossing over fifteen times its production budget with a worldwide total of $312,459,667


• The Conjuring was released in Blu-ray and DVD formats by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on October 22, 2013

The film's massive success can be largely put down to the fact that it was distributed by a major conglomerate like Time Warner, who are able to use their subsidiary companies and synergistic promotional activity to promote their film. Horror films are often harder to promote to a large audience, as TV spots are often not available before the watershed, and don't often produce merchandise

"A Night in the Woods" (Parry, 2012) 

Brody, his girlfriend Kerry and their friend Leo go hiking in Dartmoor's Wistman's Woods, so named because of its legendary haunted past. That night jealousies, sexual tensions and strained relationships come to a head turning what should have been a peaceful camping adventure into a trip to terror. This film can also be placed under the Psychological Horror genre, but Stalker Horror also emerges here

Production

• The film was produced by Nick Love, Allan Niblo, James Richardson and Huberta Von Liel. Vertigo Films played a big part in producing and distributing the film in the UK, but it was distributed by Tribeca Film in the USA and Front Row Film Entertainment in UAE and Middle-East


• Despite research, I was unable to find a production budget for the film, but from reviews on websites such as IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, it's clear enough to see that the budget was low, with no major locations and a simplistic "found-footage" style of filming


• Richard Parry both wrote and directed the film. Including himself, the cast and crew for the film was relatively small, another suggestion of a low budget


• It premiered at the Fright Fest Film Festival in the UK in August 2011, but wasn't released until September 2012, suggesting that the budget was more or less used up after the premier

Distribution

• The film, unlike The Conjuring, did not go on to be shown in cinemas and went straight to DVD on 10th September 2012


• There is no indication of how much the film went on to make, but one can only assume that it was low due to its lack of advertising and a cinema run


• Reviews of the film varied, but all retained the notion that the film was a "rip-off" of The Blair Witch Project (Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, 1999) even down to sharing a similar release poster


• Despite poor reviews, the acting in the film was praised by many critics, claiming that while it resembled Blair Witch, it surpassed it realism

It is clear to see from this example that large conglomerates certainly have the advantage in distributing their films as they have more disposable income as well as subsidiary companies that can be used to advertise their movies. However, while "A Night in the Woods" may not have been a success itself, it does not mean that independent films never succeed. The Blair Witch Project itself was an independent production and is considered one the greatest horror movies of all time. A Night in the Woods only failed due to its lack of budget, lack of advertising, and lack of originality. The later may well be something to consider when planning for our final piece.

 

GROUP: Treatment

The chilling tale of the group of serial killers known as "The Faceless Ones", named as such because of their favour of plain, white masks...

 

Neil Peck was nothing but a banker and a father in the small town of Fackenden. Yet, on his way home in the early hours of January 1st 2009, his wife Mary and daughter Lily are taken hostage by this murderous gang. Blissfully unaware of the horror that he would face on his arrival home, Neil continues to drive through the winding trees of the night. Meanwhile, his family are bound and gagged by the faceless villains, preparing nooses for their seemingly imminent death. As Neil pulls into his driveway, the faces of his family and the foes are illuminated by the headlights. However, it is only as Neil enters his garage, hearing his wife's scream that alerts him to their peril. But his desperate attempt to save them is futile, as when he bursts through the front door, the chair preventing his wife and daughter's death is knocked from beneath them, hanging them and leaving Neil broken and empty, vulnerable to the clasp of the faceless killers...

MB: The Shining (Kubrick, 1980) Technical Analysis

 

Camera	Duration	Mise-En-Scene	Effects
Warner Bros. Picture Logo	0:00 to 0:12	The shot is only meant to display the distributor, like many films	N/A
XLS: An aerial shot of an island tracking in. As it goes past the island, the camera tilts to the right	0:13 to 0:30	The somewhat “demonic” soundtrack creates a sense of foreboding. The audience has not yet seen anything scary, but the music suggests they will	Main soundtrack enters at the beginning of the shot. The shot fades into the next one
XLS: Bird’s eye view of pine forest with a road running through the centre.	0:30 to 0:50	A lone car is driving on the road. The distance of the shot somewhat distances the audience from reality, making the shot feel very empty, but still important	The scene fades in from the previous shot. The music continues to play
XLS: Aerial tracking shot over hills following the same car.	0:50 to 1:08	This shot remains distant, much like the previous shot. This is only extenuated by the fact that there are no longer any trees	The scene is cut straight in rather than a fade. The music enters a second section at around 0:53, a slower sound using   different instruments
XLS track in to MS: Aerial tracking shot that   tracks in closer to the car. Tilts left as camera goes past the car	1:09 to 1:39	The shot reveals more details about the scene. The car is a Yellow VW Beetle, perhaps suggesting a more happy side to this horror story? Or perhaps a rather twisted view of happy. Credits begin the appear in this shot also,   merely rising from, the bottom of shot, a pale blue colour. Perhaps this simple effect is used so as not to distract the audience.	The scene is cut in. The music continues as previously, but acting credits as well as the name of the film begin to appear
XLS: Bird’s eye view shot of the car driving through coastline area	1:39 to 2:09	This shot is very similar to the beginning of the last shot, perhaps   suggesting illusion? Or disorientation in the film? The car goes through a tunnel in the side of the cliff, which is aimed to make the audience predict what will happen, however, the car is fine on the other side and the audience are made to feel stupid for trying to guess	The scene is cut in. The music grows louder, perhaps suggesting the scene is near “fever-pitch”. Credits continue to  appear
XLS track into LS: The camera continues to follow the car at a distance	2:10 to 2:33	The shot appears open once again, creating a very isolated feel (until a second car goes past, but that’s not important) The cliff face could also connote a certain danger to this journey, or perhaps a sign on things to come	The scene cuts in. The music continues as credits appear
XLS: Continued track on the car	2:33 to 2:44	The introduction of snow to the mountainside gives the audience an idea of setting. It also, seemingly obviously, creates a sense of cold, or chill	The scene cuts in. The music continues as the final credits appear
XLS: Track alongside the mountain, first shot of the Hotel	2:44 to 3:00	This final shot reveals the destination of the car and its driver, a small hotel. This also reveals to the audience the setting for the film. This isolated area seems much too desolate for a hotel. Perhaps the setting is aimed to unnerve the audience from the very beginning	The scene cuts in and the music reaches its climax, signifying to the audience that this is the final shot.

Content

• The feeling of isolation created by the Extra Long Shots is useful in making the audience aware of any “oncoming danger”

• The reveal of the hotel connotes a sense of mystery even before anything has happened to it

What could the group take from this?

• The use of long tracking shots could be good in setting the scene for our opening sequence, particularly in the car as the protagonist returns home

BBK: Discuss the ways Horror Films are Produced and Distributed

The ways in which films are produced and distributed vary as to who is producing the picture and whether they are part of a industrial conglomerate such as Warner Bros, a subsidiary of Time Warner and independent producers such as British film studio Vertigo Film

Orphan (Jaume Collet-Serra 2009)

Orphan is a 2009 horror film about the adoption of a small girl named Esther, before long the truth behind Esther mysterious and secretive past starts to unravel in this psychological horror

 



Production

• Produced by Leonardo Di Caprio, Joel Silver and Susan Downey and made by the studio Dark Castle Entertainment a subsidiary of Warner Bros.


• Shot entirely in the Canadian cities of Toronto, Port Hope and Montreal.


• Warner Bros. edited the movie's trailer to remove Esther's line "It must be hard to love an adopted child as much as your own" after receiving numerous complaints from adoptive parents and foster care organizations. The line remains in the movie itself.


• The movie was originally written to take place during the fall, and some exterior shots were filmed to establish this. Shortly before principal photography was set to begin in December 2007, the Toronto locations were hit with near-record snowfall, forcing the change of setting to winter. One of the scenes written out as a result was a Halloween carnival at Daniel and Esther's school.

 

Distribution

 

• The film opened making $12,770,000 total at #4 film in the box office for its opening weekend


• Released on DVD and Blu-Ray October the 27th 2009 in the US by Warner Home Video


• It was released on DVD and Blu-Ray in the UK on November 27th by Optimum Releasing 


• Each release included advertised extra scenes and an alternative ending.


•  The film has grossed a total of $78,337,373.


• Film posters, teaser trailer, theatrical trailer, viral marketing campaign using advertisement across websites

 

This example is an example of how conglomerates like the six major Hollywood studios keep majority of their profits within the company as Time Warner has used its studio subsidiary (Dark Castle Entertainment) and its own distributor (Warner Bros. Pictures). However when it came to distribution in the UK we can see that a deal was made with English based institution Optimum Releasing a subsidiary of StudioCanal part of the Universal Conglomerate.

 

Industrial filmmakers are also given the opportunity and budget to use a range of visual affects  in order to make their films bigger and better each time. The bigger their budget for production also increases their budget for marketing meaning that they can afford to use more forms of media to get their product in the public eye, along with this the development in technology and web 2.0 means their target audience (15-24) who predominantly use technology will view any viral marketing regularly.

 

The Strangers (Bertino 2008)

The Strangers is an independent horror film based around an incident in which a couple is murdered by masked home invaders.

 

Production

 

• Produced by Vertigo Entertainment and Mandate Pictures


• Film written by director Bertino and is said to be inspired by crimes happeing around his neighborhood as a child and the killings of the Manson Family.


• Filmed on a $9 million dollar budget the production started in 2006 and ended 2007


• The house was constructed as a set for the picture

Distribution

 

• Marketing started in 2001 as the director Bertino and stars attended Comic-con and screened the teaser trailer and answered questions. 


• Later the trailer was released with a television spot and on


•  YouTube through viral marketing


• The films released was post-poned many times but was eventually released May 30th 2008 


• $20,997,985 in 2,467 theaters, ranking #3 at the box office and averaging $8,514 per theater


• The film eventually earned $82.3 million worldwide.

This example goes to show that the success of a picture isn't always determined by the power of the producers. As a films success is determined as whether it makes three times the original budget this picture was a major success for independent cinema. However due to a smaller budget independent film makers like Bertino do not have as much access to expensive visual effects which can attract larger audiences, as well as not being part of a major conglomerates meaning it is harder to acquire synergistic promotion as well as cross-media convergence. Although this lack of a ultra high budget hasn't stopped Bertino from branching into viral marketing and acquiring a TV spot for the theatrical trailer.